Dominate the Country

London, England, is the most prosperous city in the entire Kingdom of England.

The lights are on, and the street lights are lit up one by one. The main commercial district of London's Chinatown, Julu Street, is completely covered in lights. Looking from afar in the night, the large area of ​​ancient Chinese buildings and the dazzling Chinese red that makes Europeans feel glaring make it seem to be surrounded by a hazy and mysterious color, which makes people yearn for it.

In the middle of the last century, some laborers and sailors from southeastern China drifted to London and settled in the shipyard area of ​​London. When the Qing Dynasty fell, more and more Chinese appeared in Europe, and some wealthy and wealthy Eight Banners children appeared, making the Chinese color in London more and more, and Chinese restaurants also landed in Europe.

As Chen Han grew little by little, and as the exchanges between the East and the West became closer and closer, China's image and influence in Europe became larger and larger, and more and more Chinese began to pour into Europe. Especially after the French Revolution, many Chinese who originally settled in continental Europe came to London. Many high-end Chinese restaurants began to appear in the Juelu Street area. As the influence of Chinese culture on Europeans gradually increased, the service objects of Chinese restaurants gradually changed from Chinese at the beginning to a combination of Chinese and foreigners.

At the same time, Chinese people in Europe also had a clear definition, which was completely different from bannermen. Some Chinese who came to Europe before the demise of the Qing Dynasty also cut off their braids and "abandoned darkness and joined the light". Whether there were original bannermen among them, that was a matter of opinion. In addition, some wealthy Chinese owners continued to acquire shops from other local ethnic groups, and many Chinese companies and businesses that came to Europe to develop also regarded Juelu Street as their foothold. The Chinese forces seemed to occupy the Juelu Street area, and even many bannermen who drifted in Europe came around. But the gap between the Chinese and the bannermen was still very large. The place where the bannermen gathered was called "banner camp", and the place where the Chinese gathered was called "Chinatown". However, London Chinatown has not yet been formally administratively bounded.

Chen Han's European Office and embassy staff in London have close ties with Chinatown, and the Eight Banners Zongshe Party has close ties with the Banner Camp. The contradictions between the two sides are difficult to reconcile.

However, this contradiction does not affect this place from becoming a city that never sleeps in London.

With this street as the center, an area of ​​about one square kilometer is lined with large and small Chinese restaurants, Chinese business houses, Chinese banks, Chinese department stores, Chinese medicine shops, medical clinics, etc., as well as a large number of women's branches, where girls come from all over the world, plus a large number of smoking houses.

Yes, smoking houses.

In Europe, especially in the UK, opium is a panacea in Western medicine. Before the name of Chinese herbal medicine became famous in the Western world, opium was the holy medicine in Western medicine. Dissolve opium in alcohol, and then add some other things according to personal preference to prevent poisoning from overdose of opium - the end of overdose is of course death, which is the panacea in the Western world. This is also the mainstream use of opium in the UK today. Even now, in a large number of British working-class families, opium tincture is still a common medicine at home. Whether it is fever, cold, headache, vomiting, diarrhea, insomnia, dreaminess, all rely on it. Giving it to babies is the most common practice. Because the working class is relatively poor and has no formal medical access, they are forced to make a living and dare not miss work. They usually diagnose themselves. Of course, the diagnosis result is - no matter what disease, just take some opium tincture.

The arrival of the Chinese and a considerable number of Eight Banners children has brought new changes to the British opium market. Compared with taking opium tincture, smoking opium is completely separated from medical value and is purely for spiritual enjoyment, so it is more or less immoral. For the upper-middle class people in the UK, "eating cigarettes" in a tobacco shop is a shameful thing.

But there is a but here - people are curious and rebellious, and the more they are not allowed to play, the more fun it is!

Up to now, this area has developed into a prosperous area integrating eating, drinking, shopping, business, finance and other factors.

Frustrated people can dispel their depression here, and proud people can show their interests here. Chinese living in the UK can find a little shadow of their hometown here, even if it is hazy and ethereal. Couples pursuing new trends can experience the romance of exotic customs here, and even those with average income can find their own fun in the prostitutes and opium dens here.

Especially now, when the New Year is approaching, the whole Chinatown is decorated with lights and colorful decorations, and there are public acrobatics, circuses and entertainment performances from time to time.

Chen Han is about to take the throne, which is like an overwhelming hand, covering all the places where Chinese people live around the world.

Every Chinese is missing their old emperor who is about to leave. He is the hero who saved China from the ignorant rule of the Qing Dynasty and the great emperor who made China once again majestic. Millions of Chinese regard their emperor as the supreme god in their hearts.

On this busy street, in this bustling crowd, two unremarkable oriental faces were wandering aimlessly along the crowd. The older one was about 25 or 26 years old, while the younger one looked only in his early 20s.

But these two were not ordinary tourists or employees, they were teachers at a nearby Chinese school. The older one was called Li Shou, and the younger one was called Zhang Wei, who was just 21 years old this year. But they had already obtained a graduation certificate from the Education College of the Imperial College.

With the increase in the number of Chinese in Europe, it is imperative to establish Chinese schools. After all, the social environment has a strong assimilative power. China is not the sick man of East Asia after the opium war. Those Chinese living overseas will certainly teach their sons Chinese and make them proud of their motherland. But if there are no Chinese schools in the local area, these children can only go to local schools to receive pure Western education, which will inevitably lead to assimilation. Chen Ming is a banana man who does not want to see. The Chinese school in London was officially established as early as 25 years ago. So far, a total of seven schools have been built, including one high school, two junior high schools, and four primary schools.

Under the dual leadership of the Ministry of Culture and Education of China and the Education Committee of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom, the reason for this is that 80% of the teachers in these seven schools are provided by the Ministry of Culture and Education of China. The Chinese government will also allocate funds to these seven schools every year. Its intention is not simply to maintain the opening and existence of the seven schools. The greater role is to give local Chinese children of school age an opportunity to go to school.

In addition, the current educational environment in the UK is very backward. There is no compulsory education in the UK now. Half a century ago, the adult literacy rate in the UK was only 15%. The improvement of people's literacy mainly depends on charity school activities and Sunday school activities carried out by folk and religious groups or individuals. Many children from families with good economic conditions even have the bad situation of wanting to go to school but not being able to.

There are children who have never been to school and are illiterate everywhere in London. Chen Han's move, specifically Chen Ming's move, is to establish a tall national image of China in front of Europeans, and to let the next generation of Chinese who have lived overseas since childhood or since birth remember their own culture, civilization, language, and that they are Chinese!

Nowadays, the number of Chinese in London exceeds 30,000, and there are more than 4,000 children of school age. The enrollment rate of boys and girls of school age is as high as 90%, and the enrollment rate of children under 12 years old is 100%, which is a very remarkable number.

Of course, this is also related to the compulsory education advocated by Chen Han. The country's compulsory education is responsible for primary school graduation. It is not the 21st century now, and Chen Han is not able to afford the expenses of junior high school students across the country. If you want to go to junior high school, in addition to passing the exam, you must have enough financial support. Not to mention high school, they are eligible to apply for domestic universities. Although this is not easy, it is better than the UK.

In the British parliament over the years, people have been clamoring to expand the number of universities, but the whole of Britain, the whole of England still has only two universities, Oxford and Cambridge, which is also intoxicating.

However, in line with the development of the times, although the number of universities in the UK is small, vocational colleges have developed very rapidly in recent years. After all, the development of society requires a large number of practical talents, and vocational colleges are professional institutions for cultivating practical talents.

Li Shou and Zhang Wei are teachers at Chinatown High School, one teaches mathematics and the other teaches history.

Li Shou has been in the UK for more than four years. He can return to China in the second half of next year, but Zhang Wei still needs to stay here for a few more years.

But if you want to become a superior person, you have to endure hardships. It is not so easy to be evaluated for a professional title, and it is not so easy to get a household registration in a big city. These will require five years of dedication from Li Shou and Zhang Wei, and they cannot be perfunctory. The supervisor sent by Chen Han will report their work situation every semester to the Ministry of Culture and Education.

As people of ordinary background and majoring in education, Li Shou and Zhang Wei were able to get the opportunity to come to the UK because they passed the exam.

"This Juelu Street is getting more and more lively every day. The scene is not much worse than that of the capital."

Zhang Wei carried a bag of groceries in his left hand and a meat sandwich in his right hand. He ate while walking, and his mouth was full of oil. In Juelu Street, eating in a restaurant is one thing, but he prefers to rely on street snacks to solve his hunger problem.

"It's just this palm-sized piece of land." Li Shou held a newspaper in his hand. It was a supplement of the Times, which was about the assassination case at the Warsaw Railway Station that shocked Europe not long ago. He followed Zhang Wei and read the newspaper leisurely.

Li Shou, who has spent four Spring Festivals in the UK and will be able to return to China in the second half of next year, doesn't care about the current bustle at all. Ten Juelu Streets are not as good as one Qinhuai River! Next year during the Chinese New Year, he can go directly to Qinhuai River to join in the fun. After graduating from Hanlin Academy University, he came to the UK to teach wholeheartedly for five years. It would be unreasonable for the Ministry of Culture and Education not to assign him to Nanjing.

After Li Shou replied, he lowered his head and continued to read the newspaper. This is the latest report on the Warsaw Railway Station attack. It is really unimaginable that Talleyrand died in Warsaw like this. This is the Prime Minister of France?

Now the identity of the assassin has been confirmed. He is an employee of the Warsaw Municipal Government and comes from a Polish aristocratic family...

Li Shou sighed in his heart.

With such a good background, a decent job, and a beautiful wife, he actually went to the dead end of assassination without hesitation...

Li Shou did not feel pity for the assassin, but felt turbulent and shocked in his heart for the Polish people's determination to resist the rule of the Tsarist Russia and fight for independence and freedom. At the same time, he also paid attention to a series of impacts after this assassination case...

Zhang Wei did not have too many feelings, although he admired the cool feeling of assassins. Close at hand, everyone is the enemy! Within a small space, I am invincible!

Just like the words describing assassins in Chinese history books, comets hit the moon, white rainbows penetrate the sun, with a kind of desolate, resolute and fearless feelings.

These are real warriors. They are not ruthless, but they are affectionate, great affection, great feelings, and great benevolence.

But Zhang Wei's focus is only on assassins, not Li Shou's enthusiastic attention to subsequent changes in the situation and the impact on the European continent. Although it is Zhang Wei, not Li Shou, who teaches history, Li Shou teaches mathematics.

"You haven't seen enough? Since the day before yesterday, the newspapers have been full of news about Talleyrand's assassination. Although this is a big event, it's a bit of an exaggeration to keep talking about it over and over again."

Zhang Wei is more looking forward to news from China during this period. Unfortunately, he has come to Europe, otherwise he can once again witness the heroic appearance of the Wehrmacht soldiers during the grand military parade. Moreover, this military parade also included troops from vassal states, which was the first time in more than 40 years of Chen Han.

And Zhang Wei was still worried about one thing, the exam. In six days, on the 22nd day of the twelfth lunar month, the first batch of students since his graduation would face the crucial final exam. Parents of students in this era dare not ignore the scores.

After hearing Zhang Wei's complaints, Li Shou put away the newspaper. Anyway, he had finished reading it.

Li Shou knew what Zhang Wei was thinking without even looking at him. They would never dare to enter the opium den. Once they entered the opium den, they would be finished if they were discovered. The news would be reported to the Ministry of Culture and Education, and even their qualifications as teachers would be revoked. Even opium tincture was avoided by them like a poisonous snake.

But in addition to banks, businesses, shops and Chinese restaurants everywhere, Juelu Street also had a fun place called the Women's Branch, especially those high-end Women's Branches, which provided one-stop services for eating, drinking and having fun.

Li Shou had a wife, and his wife lived in the school's family compound in London, but Zhang Wei didn't. Zhang Wei's wife is still serving her parents-in-law in her hometown. How can a man in his early twenties, healthy and strong, not think about sex?

Even if Zhang Wei is a little thin-skinned, he will not be thin-skinned in this matter. Moreover, Zhang Wei and Li Shou have a high income, especially Zhang Wei. In addition to teaching in school, he also accepts invitations from other British educational organizations. Chinese history is very popular in the UK. Even if he is young and the amount is not too high, he can speak fluent English, which also brings Zhang Wei a lot of income. Going to the "restaurant" is a piece of cake.

The restaurant is still in front, and the two people with a high income are disdainful of the prostitutes standing on the street. The target is directly aimed at the "Istanbul" with brilliant lights and walls. This women's branch with a strong Ottoman style is more attractive to Zhang and Li from China than the Chinese classical style buildings with pavilions, towers, pools and water corridors.

Of course, the owner of this restaurant is also Chinese.

The two arrived at the destination and saw from afar that the lobby of Yueming Building, which was three doors away from Istanbul, was brightly lit. There was a huge crowd in front of the door, but some people were crying and shouting, and it was an extremely chaotic scene.

"What's going on?"

Zhang Wei and Li Shou looked at each other and rushed over. A moment later, they received a shocking news.

"The Mayor of London was assassinated at a dinner party invited by a friend! The murderer has not been caught yet."

The place for dinner was Yueming Building.

After hearing this news, Zhang and Li really didn't speak for a long time.

If the attack on Warsaw Railway Station was very far away from them, then the current assassination was very close to them.

Assassins, assassins are rampant...

In the second half of the twelfth lunar month of the Chinese lunar calendar, both the East and the West were racking their brains for cunning assassins.